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CSS Lark

History
NameLark
NamesakeLark
OwnerConfederate States of America
BuilderLaird Brothers, Birkenhead, England
LaunchedNov 1864
FateScrapped, 1896
General characteristics
Class and typeLark-class paddle steamer
Tonnage390 GRT
Length210 ft 8 in (64.2 m)
Beam23 ft 2 in (7.1 m)
Draught6 ft (1.8 m)
Installed power150 ihp (110 kW)
Propulsion
Speed12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)

The Lark was a paddle steamer employed by the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. She was the last blockade runner to successfully escape from a Southern port before the Union blockade completely closed off this vital source of supplies.

Lark was designed and built by John Laird & Sons. The ship made four successful round trips through the blockade between Galveston, Texas, and Havana, Cuba. In April 1865, she ran aground near the entrance to Galveston harbor. Two launches dispatched from the Union blockading squadron attacked the Lark, which managed to fend off the assault with help from Confederate ground forces. On May 24, she dashed into Galveston again and managed to slip through the blockade back out to open sea, the last Confederate blockade runner to do so.

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